Page 3 Clichés 


One reason poetic words are so effective is that they avoid clichés (comparisons/metaphors that are overused). They combine words and ideas in new and unusual ways.


©Pixabay

Avoiding Clichés

A cliché is a comparison/metaphor that has been overused and the overuse has made it less effective. 

A reader will give little attention to it because he or she has read it or heard it many times before. All that glitters is not gold!

Good writers think of their own, unique expressions instead of relying on clichés.

How do you know if an expression is a cliché?

A good rule of thumb (another cliché) is to think about whether you could complete the phrase, when you hear the first part of it.


Some examples of clichés:
  • nipped in the ____ (bud)
  • ladder of _____ (success)
  • make mountains out of _____ (molehills)
  • storms of ____ (life)
Some metaphors are inappropriate or do not enhance meaning. They stick out awkwardly.
  • The tide of emotion stopped. (Tides don't stop; they ebb and flow.)
  • When she came out of the water, her hair looked like limp spaghetti. Globs of mud clung like meatballs to the white pasta of her face. She was covered with seaweed and sand, which looked like spinach and grated cheese.
(These metaphors and similes take control of what is being said.)




  1. The room was so quiet, you could hear _____ .

    a pin drop

  2. He's as blind as _____ .

    a bat

  3. She was as cool as _____ .

    a cucumber

  4. That baby is as cute as _____ .

    a button
    a bug

  5. The test was as easy as _____ .

    pie

  6. It's like _____ . Once you learn it, you never forget.

    riding a bicycle

  7. I'm busy today, but I'm as free as _____ tomorrow.

    a bird

  8. I want you to tidy this room and make it as neat as _____ .

    a pin

  9. What's wrong? You look as white as _____ .

    a sheet
    a ghost

  10. With friends like that, who _____ ?

    needs enemies



©"So Cliche" by Louis Bavent, Flickr
When you wonder if something you have written is a cliché, ask friends or family members if they can complete the sentence. If they can, likely you have used a cliché. Try to think of a more original expression.


When you have completed all parts of Assignment 4,

  • be sure you have renamed your file (YOURNAME) la 8-3-4
  • upload the completed assignment into the 3.4 Assignment file on the next page
Check in two to three days to retrieve the marked assignment and review the feedback from your teacher.